The King of Jin returned home three days later, his face full of fatigue. "The five villages connected to the outside of the pass were looted. According to the survivors, it was the Di soldiers who did it. Now the Di army has surrounded Xining City."
"Was the battle report sent by the Xining garrison commander?" Jiang Changning asked.
"Fight to the death to send them out, Xining is in danger." Prince Jin said in a heavy voice.
Jiang Changning bit the corner of his lip, "Are you going to lead the troops to war?"
King Jin looked at her. Jiang Changning stared at him for a moment, then lowered his head and said sullenly, "I, I'll go pack your luggage for you."
"Why are you crying?" King Jin reached out and lifted her chin, and found that her eyes were red and sparkling.
"Who cried? I didn't." Jiang Changning denied it. She didn't know why her eyes were sore and tears were streaming.
The King of Jin readily changed his words and coaxed her, "Yes, yes, you didn't cry. I was mistaken."
"Let go, I'm going to pack your luggage." Jiang Changning frowned, holding back the discomfort and not letting the tears fall.
“No need to collect it.”
"I just do some persuasion, it doesn't tire me out."
The King of Jin laughed, "I won't go. Someone else will lead the troops."
Jiang Changning was stunned, "You're not going?"
"I dont go."
"You are such a disgusting person. Even after all this, you are still teasing me." Jiang Changning reacted and was so angry that he clenched his fist and wanted to hit him.
King Jin grabbed her fist and said, "Talking and laughing will make you happy."
As soon as he entered the room, he saw Jiang Changning sitting there, looking distraught, which made him feel distressed.
"I thought you would lead the troops into battle." Jiang Changning sat down next to him.
The Prince of Jin is both civil and military, and now he is in charge of the Ministry of War. It is natural for him to lead the troops to war.
"I am the regent, holding a high position of power. It is better for me not to put myself in danger, so as not to cause unrest in the court." Prince Jin said, touching her belly.
Jiang Changning was stupid for three years after pregnancy, so she didn't think this made sense. "Who should the court send to lead the troops to relieve the siege of Xining?"
"Prince Jiujiang will be the main general, Xu Jiajie and Gu Junfeng will be the deputy generals, Qin Zhaoxi will be the military supervisor, and they will lead 500,000 troops to set off today."
Jiang Changning curled his lips, "Will the King of Jiujiang lead the troops?"
"Xu Jiajie and Gu Junfeng will."
Jiang Changning snorted coldly, "So he went there to grab the credit. He is not afraid of the sword. If he is not careful, he will not only not get the credit, but also lose his life."
"In order to seize the military power, he doesn't care about so many things." King Jin laughed sarcastically, "He believes that he is blessed with a good fortune."
"Let's not talk about this any more. You're tired too. I'll have someone run you some water. You can take a bath to relieve your fatigue, then go to bed and have a rest." Jiang Changning said, and stood up to instruct the maid to do something.
After taking a bath, Prince Jin pulled Jiang Changning and said, "Come, sleep with me."
"I've just been up for less than half an hour. I'm not sleepy." Jiang Changning said resistingly.
Prince Jin didn't care whether she was sleepy or not. He hugged her and took her to bed.
Jiang Changning could only sleep with him, but she was restless and not only pushed around, but also put her hands on Prince Jin.
"Ningning, since you lit the fire, I won't let you go." Prince Jin held her hand. Although he was very tired now, he had been empty-handed for two or three months and was extremely hungry.
Jiang Changning nudged him with his belly, "Your Highness, I have an amulet."
"Wrong decision." Prince Jin was annoyed.
Jiang Changning smiled smugly, and King Jin continued, "Write down the account. When you are out of confinement, we will settle the final account."
Jiang Changning's expression froze, forgetting that her amulet had an expiration date. "Your Highness, it's not good to keep accounts between husband and wife, right?"
Jiang Changning obeyed and snuggled in his arms, closing his eyes.
People who are not sleepy fall asleep earlier than those who are sleepy.
Prince Jin looked at her sleeping face, laughed silently, kissed her forehead, and fell asleep with her in his arms.
Two days later, 500,000 soldiers were assembled, and the three regents personally escorted the King of Jiujiang and others out of the city.
On the second day after the troops set out, an urgent battle report arrived from 800 miles away: Xining was lost, the defender of Xining died heroically, and the Di army marched straight into Lanzhou city.
Xining has an army of 50,000, and it has only held out for six or seven days. There are only more than 20,000 troops stationed in Lanzhou City. I am afraid it will be breached in a day or two.
Those who knew about this situation could not help but say with worry: "Lanzhou City is in danger."
Everyone thought that in a few days, they would receive the battle report that Lanzhou City had fallen.
Because of the war, the capital became much quieter and all the banquets held in the various mansions were stopped.
"The Di army is coming so aggressively, they won't attack the capital directly, right?" Fu Cui said.
Shu Fei glared at her and said, "What nonsense are you talking about? Are 500,000 soldiers vegetarians?"
"If we rush over to kill 500,000 pigs, it will take a long time, not to mention 500,000 well-trained soldiers. Don't worry, the Di army can't reach the capital." Jiang Changning said with a smile.
The defender of Lanzhou used his military prowess to lead the people of the city to resist the Di army, but the disparity in military strength was too great.
Ten days later, Lanzhou City was captured. Only the youngest son of the defending general escaped under the escort of the family generals. The rest of the family all died for their country.
The imperial reinforcements were still three days away from Lanzhou City.
Along with the report of the fall of Lanzhou City, there was also a secret letter from Gu Junfeng that he sent to Prince Jin from his confidant.
After reading the secret letter, Prince Jin almost fainted from anger. He slapped the table with his palm, knocking off a piece of the corner, and said in hatred: "Helian Lijiang really deserves to die."
Lanzhou City could have been defended, but the King of Jiujiang was lustful and accepted beauties given by local officials along the way, delaying the army's progress.
Reinforcements were delayed in arriving, and Lanzhou City was short of food and medicine. After being trapped for ten days, the casualties increased and the city could no longer hold out.
The defending general was not allowed to arrange a retreat, and he led the remaining 3,000 elite soldiers to be trapped in the city and died a heroic death.
Gu Junfeng is the King of Jin's man, this is a secret. The King of Jin cannot impeach the King of Jiujiang based on his secret report. The most important thing is that the King of Jiujiang is about to lead his troops to engage in a head-on confrontation with the Di army.
Changing generals before a battle is a big taboo in military operations.
Gu Junfeng’s secret report cannot be used, but the official document submitted by the military supervisor Qin Zhaoxi can be used.
"Your Majesty, Prince Jiujiang is the chief general that Uncle Prince Qing strongly recommended. But what he did along the way doesn't show any sign of him being able to lead troops to provide emergency support." Prince Jin said angrily.
It is okay to fight for power, but one cannot disregard the lives of soldiers and border residents.
After the fall of Xining, the Di army massacred tens of thousands of border residents and burned down half of the city.
Lanzhou City was broken, and tens of thousands of border residents died at the hands of the Di army.
The tragedy in Xining cannot be blamed on the King of Jiujiang, but he cannot escape responsibility for what happened in Lanzhou.
When Prince Qing saw what was written in the official document, he cursed Prince Jiujiang inwardly, saying that he was a hopeless case, but he still had to speak up for him, "Prince Jiujiang is entrusted by your majesty to lead the troops to rescue. It is impossible for him to do such an unwise thing. Your majesty, please understand."
He added: "This is just the words of Qin's military supervisor, so it is not to be trusted."
The King of Jin did not argue with him and directly suggested: "Your Majesty can send the imperial censor to accompany the officers and soldiers escorting the grain and grass to the northwest to investigate along the way."
(End of this chapter)